[RP] Chapter 1 : Departure
(beginning of bubastan)
Almost invisible, slouched over in the grass, Buba ponder his next move, surrounded by the hummering of the wild steppe.
The multitude of his people have forsaken the horde, now prefering the lord's life, entrapping themselves like those they conquered had before them.
Because he sticked to the old way, he was now an outcast, with only his mount and a few loyal warriors to call his own.
Judged and deprecated in the tribunal led by their kindred, in front of a sheepish crowd forming the audience, they had been banned from the capital city for the rest of their lives.
Angry and sour over the wrong he had been dealt, ultimate insult to the tribes ancestors and himself, he now was busy processing what happened and what it meant for the future.
In the face of this new reality, there was much to revise: everything he had been taught and knew, was in question.
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loginNight has come, and the wrinkled warlord still has to return from his isolation and rally the men.Now reduced to the size of a poaching party, the morale of those still willing to follow the Vagabond was at its bottom.
Time seemed to run against them: the recent events had forced them to wander out of their home and leave their more placid relatives behind.
They were now without a banner to protect them, at the mercy of any neighbouring fledgling states, and their families would most likely suffer from the dishonor that had befallen them.
Thus shaped were the thoughts of the sorry bunch, when their leader slowly appeared through the fog of the lingering twilight.
Slowly dragging his arched back to the center of the campfire, scanning the surrounding faces, eyes ablaze with dark flames.
They froze as they returned his glare.
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loginAdvancing toward them, the soldiers steel themselves for whatever they will hear next, as if their lives depended on it...And their very lives were changed in those instants, much more than what they could ever have anticipated.
If they felt pitifully awful before then, they were going to sense a change as deep as the ocean go through their souls.
"Let them keep their crowns, we wont be confined to any thrones of cold stone...", not many more words were needed to remind them the bone-rattling affliction they felt.
Rekindling the flame of their wounded pride, they were energized with more and more courage as Buba told them of what was, what is, and what will.
If they were to be doomed to live outside the newly erected fiefdoms, at least they would use their chance to continue their life as they used and wanted to.
Namely, reaping all the joys of life without moderation, making others feel miserable doing it, until their last breath went out of their mortal flesh.
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loginThe battle between chaos and order will not stop today, Buba's followers are but one pawn in the great scheme of history...Aye, arent we all mere pawns?
Pawns that are born, dies, and lives in the middle?
This was the simple frame of thought of those now ravenous rascals, intent on not letting their destiny be changed by men that lost their way, and with it, their respect.
For the next weeks, they rolled like thunder down the hills, and properly ransacked everything that was between them and the morrow.
Many were the foes that were slain then, and terrible the impact it had on the population that was barely starting to settle down.
Local militias were sent against them, but the results were less than satisfactory.
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loginThe few times that there was contact between one another, the raiders just fled, leaving nothing alive on their path doing so.Growing in merriment from their streak of success, they were running headlong into the action, anxious to add more spoils and fame to the small warband.
As impetuous and lucky as they were, they began to attract more and more disenchanted pioneers, who still strongly felt the urge to go back to older customs.
Thus they also grew in size, which enabled them to grow in ambition too, as the future would show.
At the bustling encampment, there was the usual banter of warriors willing to inflate their ego in front of their comrades, but there was something new.
People began to speak of bigger things, plans that would surely set them for life, plans that would also create uncertainties, rivalries even.
Such talks were tolerated by Buba, because he knew it would happen after a time, if ever they were still alive and strong after having departed from their past predicament.
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loginWhile the chatter of the night continues, pairs of unspotted eyes analyzes the small fortifications and surroundings...Competing on who will shoot for the farthest stars, one can already note those who are the most dangerously audacious wannabe chiefs, and those that are most prudent.
While the men compared their companions's worth and their own, a hail of arrows came down on them, stopping their conversations short.
"To arms! To arms! We are under attack!", screamed the assembly, while rougher war cries from the outside menaced to drown them all.
And drowning they were, on blood and guts, and not solely their own, as the bewildered attackers found resistance where they thought there would be none.
Fast on their feet, weapon in hands, the raiders viciously counter-attacked and the battle appeared to be turning for them, as the opposition retreated and disappeared as quickly as they came.
The last lumbering foes were dispatched, amid the burning carcasses of tents and woodworks, and the men began to chant victory.
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loginWas it really a victory?Not the last to witness death and its many cruel variations, the bandits were still not prepared for this.
After the temporary ectasy at repelling the surprise attack that befell them, they were now starting to feel the real impact of the blow they had received.
Accounting the deads, they had killed more than they had died, but the cost was greater than all the raids they had done untill now.
Many friends, sisters, brothers, had died this night; if the survivors were doubting the state of peril they were in before, they were now deadly convinced.
Not helping to quell the spirits, was the marks that most of the foes bore on their shields and faces: they had come from tribes most of the men had been a part of.
Swearing blood-oaths above the lifeless bodies of their comrades in arms, they were now ready to deal with whatever and whoever would dare go in front of them.
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loginTheir newfound hate was set; their next goal, obvious...The war of the steppe has begun.
To be continued...
Next chapter: soon
